The forests of the Sunderbans conceal many mysteries. It has now thrown up a new challenge to zoologists in the form of the remains of an 'unknown' animal that was accidentally unearthed by a farmer and his daughter on May 26.
The remains of an animal - around 11-foot-long and some five feet wide - are lying in a house of Santosh Mandol at the nondescript Manmathanagar in Gosaba's Bipradaspur village. Santosh and his youngest daughter Shubha stumbled upon the bones while digging the banks of the pond adjacent to their house.
"My daughter saw something jutting out of the ground. When I turned to see what it was, I hit my leg against something hard. I tried to pull it out but it wouldn't budge. Then, I dug up the place and took it out," said Santosh.
Intrigued, the family kept digging the area for the next three days. Bones came tumbling out. They ended up unearthing more than 150 pieces of all shapes and sizes.
Forest department officials have already visited the village and seen the bones. However, they have not been able to identify the animal. "It doesn't appear to be the remains of a crocodile or of a rhinoceros. We can rule out elephants as they never existed in the Sunderbans. I have asked the Zoological Survey of India to go to the village and find out," said principal chief conservator of forest Atanu Raha. A fossil of a rhinoceros was found in Chhoto Mollakhali a few years ago.
Sunderbans affairs minister Kanti Ganguly has also been informed about the findings.
Initially, Santosh had thrown away the bones. But a local homoeopath, Mukut Mohan Biswas, saw the bones and asked Santosh to preserve these. Biswas brought the matter to the notice of Uttam Saha, an anthropologist and schoolteacher.
Saha informed the Gosaba police station about the findings. "When I saw the bones, I realised they weren't remains of animals that are found in this region. I was really taken aback by the shape of the limbs. The hind legs are bigger than the forelegs. Only experts can identify this animal. We want them to visit our village and find out the truth for us," said Saha.
He had asked Santosh to keep digging. Within three days, they had dug out almost the entire carcass apart from the skull. "It must be buried somewhere deep. These people are not experts and were digging as they wished. This might have damaged the bones. We didn't want to take any risks," Saha said.
The news spread like wildfire. Since last Monday, there have been a steady flow of visitors. His wife Draupadi is tired though. "Hundreds of people are coming every day. We can't even go to the fields," said Draupadi. People are flocking to their home from fur-flung islands to have a look at the bones. And there are already complaints of theft. Santosh complains that a few teeth have gone missing.
Police are keeping a watch on Santosh's house. "We have asked the local police to monitor the situation and ensure that nothing goes missing," said South 24-Parganas SP S N Gupta
P/S:maybe the bones came from the unknown creatures??
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Turns out some dinosaurs could swim
Fossilized foot marks left by a big meat-eater on a lake bed in northern Spain 125 million years ago provide strong evidence that at least some dinosaurs were good swimmers, scientists said on Thursday.
Dinosaurs ruled the land from about 230 million years ago to 65 million years ago. But how they did in the water has been less clear.
There were numerous huge, fully marine reptiles living at the same time, including the plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs, but they were not dinosaurs and in fact were only very distantly related to them.
Writing in the journal Geology, researchers led by Loic Costeur of the Universite de Nantes in France described tracks fossilized in sandstone that were left as a dinosaur swam in water roughly 10.5 feet deep, scratching the lake bottom with clawed feet.
"The animal used a pelvic paddle motion, much like living aquatic birds," Costeur said by e-mail.
Twelve "swim tracks" over a stretch of about 50 feet included long and slender sets of grooves. Fossilized ripple marks at the site suggested the dinosaur was swimming against a current whiling trying to maintain a straight path, the researchers said.
The researchers said the shape and nature of the tracks indicated they were left by a large bipedal theropod dinosaur and not a big crocodile even though these were around at the time. Theropods are the familiar big carnivores like the North American dinosaurs Tyrannosaurus and Allosaurus.
Scientists have been seeking evidence that dinosaurs -- like today's large mammals such as elephants and tigers -- were capable of swimming when circumstances demanded, like hunting in wet ecosystems, crossing rivers or escaping floods.
Previously discovered fossils showed swimming tracks apparently left by other dinosaurs such as sauropods -- long-necked animals like Diplodocus -- and duckbilled dinosaurs. But some of these have been disputed and were not as revealing as the new ones.
The new tracks provided the first definitive evidence of an active swimming behavior in dinosaurs and are the best record of swimming by theropods, researchers said.
The finding also extends the range of ideas about dinosaur behavior, Costeur added, including whether some thrived in aquatic environments.
The tracks were discovered three years ago in the Spanish province of La Rioja, Costeur said.
"The excellent preservation of these tracks provides an invaluable opportunity for biomechanical modeling in order to improve our understanding of dinosaur swimming ability and physiology," the researchers wrote.
Some birds, which scientists believe descended from small feathered dinosaurs roughly 150 million years ago, also were highly adept at swimming during the age of dinosaurs, including the diving bird Hesperornis.
P/S:i personally believed that they not actually swimming but only try to dragging the body to in front when dinasaurs down in the water!!
Dinosaurs ruled the land from about 230 million years ago to 65 million years ago. But how they did in the water has been less clear.
There were numerous huge, fully marine reptiles living at the same time, including the plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs, but they were not dinosaurs and in fact were only very distantly related to them.
Writing in the journal Geology, researchers led by Loic Costeur of the Universite de Nantes in France described tracks fossilized in sandstone that were left as a dinosaur swam in water roughly 10.5 feet deep, scratching the lake bottom with clawed feet.
"The animal used a pelvic paddle motion, much like living aquatic birds," Costeur said by e-mail.
Twelve "swim tracks" over a stretch of about 50 feet included long and slender sets of grooves. Fossilized ripple marks at the site suggested the dinosaur was swimming against a current whiling trying to maintain a straight path, the researchers said.
The researchers said the shape and nature of the tracks indicated they were left by a large bipedal theropod dinosaur and not a big crocodile even though these were around at the time. Theropods are the familiar big carnivores like the North American dinosaurs Tyrannosaurus and Allosaurus.
Scientists have been seeking evidence that dinosaurs -- like today's large mammals such as elephants and tigers -- were capable of swimming when circumstances demanded, like hunting in wet ecosystems, crossing rivers or escaping floods.
Previously discovered fossils showed swimming tracks apparently left by other dinosaurs such as sauropods -- long-necked animals like Diplodocus -- and duckbilled dinosaurs. But some of these have been disputed and were not as revealing as the new ones.
The new tracks provided the first definitive evidence of an active swimming behavior in dinosaurs and are the best record of swimming by theropods, researchers said.
The finding also extends the range of ideas about dinosaur behavior, Costeur added, including whether some thrived in aquatic environments.
The tracks were discovered three years ago in the Spanish province of La Rioja, Costeur said.
"The excellent preservation of these tracks provides an invaluable opportunity for biomechanical modeling in order to improve our understanding of dinosaur swimming ability and physiology," the researchers wrote.
Some birds, which scientists believe descended from small feathered dinosaurs roughly 150 million years ago, also were highly adept at swimming during the age of dinosaurs, including the diving bird Hesperornis.
P/S:i personally believed that they not actually swimming but only try to dragging the body to in front when dinasaurs down in the water!!
Scientists Discover 24 Species in Suriname
A purple fluorescent frog is one of 24 new species found in the South American highlands of Suriname , conservationists reported on Monday, warning that these creatures are threatened by illegal gold mining.
The discovery of so many species outside the insect realm is extraordinary and points up the need to survey distant regions, said Leeanne Alonso of Conservation International, which led the expedition that found the new species.
"When you go to these places that are so unexplored and so remote, we do tend to find new species ... but most of them are insects," Alonso said by telephone from Suriname 's capital, Paramaribo. "What's really exciting here is we found a lot of new species of frogs and fish as well."
The two-tone frog -- whose skin is covered with irregular fluorescent lavender loops on a background of aubergine -- was discovered in 2006 as part of a survey of Suriname 's Nassau plateau, the conservation group said.
Scientists combing Suriname 's Nassau plateau and Lely Mountains found four other new frog species aside from the purple one, six species of fish, 12 dung beetles and a new ant species, the organization said in a statement.
These creatures were discovered by 13 scientists who explored a region about 80 miles southeast of Paramaribo, including areas with enough clean fresh water sources to support abundant fish and amphibians.
They also found 27 species native to the Guayana Shield region, which spreads over Suriname , Guyana, French Guiana and northern Brazil. One of these was the rare armored catfish, which conservationists feared was extinct because gold miners had contaminated a creek where it was last seen 50 years ago.
Including the new species, the scientists observed 467 species at the two sites, ranging from large cats like panthers and pumas, to monkeys, reptiles, bats and insects.
While these places are far from human civilization, they are totally unprotected and may be threatened by illegal gold-mining, Alonso said.
These highland areas have also been investigated as sources of bauxite, used to make aluminum, but will most likely not be mined in the future, she said, at least not by the two mining companies that sponsored the study.
The sponsors are BHP Billiton Maatschappij Suriname (BMS, a subsidiary of BHP Billiton) Suriname Aluminium Company LLC (Suralco, a subsidiary of Alcoa Inc).
"It's an opportunity now for all the players, the mining companies who still have mining concessions there, the local communities, the government, the NGOs (non-governmental organizations), to try to make a regional plan for the area," Alonso said.
P/S:my goD!the purple coloured frog is so unique!!
The discovery of so many species outside the insect realm is extraordinary and points up the need to survey distant regions, said Leeanne Alonso of Conservation International, which led the expedition that found the new species.
"When you go to these places that are so unexplored and so remote, we do tend to find new species ... but most of them are insects," Alonso said by telephone from Suriname 's capital, Paramaribo. "What's really exciting here is we found a lot of new species of frogs and fish as well."
The two-tone frog -- whose skin is covered with irregular fluorescent lavender loops on a background of aubergine -- was discovered in 2006 as part of a survey of Suriname 's Nassau plateau, the conservation group said.
Scientists combing Suriname 's Nassau plateau and Lely Mountains found four other new frog species aside from the purple one, six species of fish, 12 dung beetles and a new ant species, the organization said in a statement.
These creatures were discovered by 13 scientists who explored a region about 80 miles southeast of Paramaribo, including areas with enough clean fresh water sources to support abundant fish and amphibians.
They also found 27 species native to the Guayana Shield region, which spreads over Suriname , Guyana, French Guiana and northern Brazil. One of these was the rare armored catfish, which conservationists feared was extinct because gold miners had contaminated a creek where it was last seen 50 years ago.
Including the new species, the scientists observed 467 species at the two sites, ranging from large cats like panthers and pumas, to monkeys, reptiles, bats and insects.
While these places are far from human civilization, they are totally unprotected and may be threatened by illegal gold-mining, Alonso said.
These highland areas have also been investigated as sources of bauxite, used to make aluminum, but will most likely not be mined in the future, she said, at least not by the two mining companies that sponsored the study.
The sponsors are BHP Billiton Maatschappij Suriname (BMS, a subsidiary of BHP Billiton) Suriname Aluminium Company LLC (Suralco, a subsidiary of Alcoa Inc).
"It's an opportunity now for all the players, the mining companies who still have mining concessions there, the local communities, the government, the NGOs (non-governmental organizations), to try to make a regional plan for the area," Alonso said.
P/S:my goD!the purple coloured frog is so unique!!
Sunday, June 3, 2007
taLk oF mY owN
receNtly starting to get a bit excited..coz i feel that my university's life gonna start soon..this will be the last month for me to stay at my boring home and long last holidays..that's annoying..i cant stand it anymore..so my blood is kinda heat and start to burst out..haha..hopefully can go to KK,sabah to study UMS..the reason i go to there got 3..1st is cause i prefer a nature place more than a modern city..such as KL or penang..KK will be a perfect place for me..although Sarawak seem nice but the course i wanted not available at there..then 2nd is my mom supported me..because of the 3rd reason..my sister will return from perth,australia to KK,sabah to work..so my mom think that i will have a companion when semester break or weekends..but too bad she return on august..and i will start my education at the 1st of july..so will be very nervous that time to go to a place so unfamiliar for myself..somemore my mom support me study at there so that she can visit me and my sis in a row when she is free..haha..clever my mom..maybe a new environment will suit for me..coz KK is a place i never been to..so it's good for me..haha..that's all..gonna stop at here coz kinda sleepy..
P/S:a lot things have to put away if i go UMS...T_T
P/S:a lot things have to put away if i go UMS...T_T
New Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vents, Life Form Discovered
A new "black smoker"--an undersea mineral chimney emitting hot springs of iron-darkened water--has been discovered at 8,500-foot depths by an expedition funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to explore the Pacific Ocean floor off Costa Rica.
Scientists from Duke University, the Universities of New Hampshire and South Carolina, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts have named their discovery the Medusa Hydrothermal Vent Field.
The researchers chose that name to highlight the presence there of a unique pink form of the jellyfish order stauromedusae. The jellyfish resemble "the serpent-haired Medusa of Greek myth," said expedition leader Emily Klein, a geologist at Duke University.
The bell-shaped jellyfish sighted near the vents may be of a new species "because no one has seen this color before," said Karen Von Damm, a geologist at the University of New Hampshire.
According to Von Damm, stauromedusae are usually found away from high-temperature hydrothermal vents, where the fluids are a little bit cooler, not close to the vents as these are.
Aboard the Research Vessel (R/V) Atlantis, the researchers are studying ocean floor geology of the East Pacific Rise, one of the mid-ocean ridge systems where new crust is made as the earth spreads apart to release molten lava.
"Each new vent site has the potential to reveal new discoveries in interactions between hot rocks beneath the seafloor, the fluids that interact with those rocks and the oceans above, as well as a rich biosphere that depends on vent processes," said Adam Schultz, program director in NSF's Division of Ocean Sciences, which funded the expedition through its Ridge 2000 program. "This discovery has implications for understanding the origin of Earth's crust, its evolution over time and how living organisms adapt to extreme environmental conditions."
Jason II, a remotely-controlled robotic vehicle the scientists are using to probe the vent field, logged water temperatures of 330 degrees Celsius (626 degrees Fahrenheit) at the mouth of one of the vents. Jason II subsequently found a second vent about 100 yards away.
Von Damm said that heat-tolerant tubeworms found living on Medusa's chimneys, a type known as alvinellids, are commonplace in the equatorial Pacific and thrive on high-iron fluids. Jason also has retrieved two other types of tubeworms--tevnia and riftia--from the vent area.
In addition, the camera-studded robot, which can collect biological specimens with the aid of the mechanical arms it uses to remove rock samples, has gathered samples of mussels from the vent area.
According to Von Damm, wherever there are mid-ocean ridges, scientists frequently find geothermal vents warmed by heat energy from underlying volcanic conduits.
"Each new vent sparks fresh excitement, because each one is different. Every vent has a different chemistry, and that helps us understand the processes going on in the ocean crust. Each one gives us a different piece of the puzzle," Von Damm said.
More than 500 new species have been found at vents since they were first discovered in 1977.
"After looking at relatively barren lava flows for several days on this expedition," said geologist Scott White of the University of South Carolina, "we all knew it would be special when we found creatures living at this new vent field."
P/S:again the sea gave birth to new life form..
Scientists from Duke University, the Universities of New Hampshire and South Carolina, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts have named their discovery the Medusa Hydrothermal Vent Field.
The researchers chose that name to highlight the presence there of a unique pink form of the jellyfish order stauromedusae. The jellyfish resemble "the serpent-haired Medusa of Greek myth," said expedition leader Emily Klein, a geologist at Duke University.
The bell-shaped jellyfish sighted near the vents may be of a new species "because no one has seen this color before," said Karen Von Damm, a geologist at the University of New Hampshire.
According to Von Damm, stauromedusae are usually found away from high-temperature hydrothermal vents, where the fluids are a little bit cooler, not close to the vents as these are.
Aboard the Research Vessel (R/V) Atlantis, the researchers are studying ocean floor geology of the East Pacific Rise, one of the mid-ocean ridge systems where new crust is made as the earth spreads apart to release molten lava.
"Each new vent site has the potential to reveal new discoveries in interactions between hot rocks beneath the seafloor, the fluids that interact with those rocks and the oceans above, as well as a rich biosphere that depends on vent processes," said Adam Schultz, program director in NSF's Division of Ocean Sciences, which funded the expedition through its Ridge 2000 program. "This discovery has implications for understanding the origin of Earth's crust, its evolution over time and how living organisms adapt to extreme environmental conditions."
Jason II, a remotely-controlled robotic vehicle the scientists are using to probe the vent field, logged water temperatures of 330 degrees Celsius (626 degrees Fahrenheit) at the mouth of one of the vents. Jason II subsequently found a second vent about 100 yards away.
Von Damm said that heat-tolerant tubeworms found living on Medusa's chimneys, a type known as alvinellids, are commonplace in the equatorial Pacific and thrive on high-iron fluids. Jason also has retrieved two other types of tubeworms--tevnia and riftia--from the vent area.
In addition, the camera-studded robot, which can collect biological specimens with the aid of the mechanical arms it uses to remove rock samples, has gathered samples of mussels from the vent area.
According to Von Damm, wherever there are mid-ocean ridges, scientists frequently find geothermal vents warmed by heat energy from underlying volcanic conduits.
"Each new vent sparks fresh excitement, because each one is different. Every vent has a different chemistry, and that helps us understand the processes going on in the ocean crust. Each one gives us a different piece of the puzzle," Von Damm said.
More than 500 new species have been found at vents since they were first discovered in 1977.
"After looking at relatively barren lava flows for several days on this expedition," said geologist Scott White of the University of South Carolina, "we all knew it would be special when we found creatures living at this new vent field."
P/S:again the sea gave birth to new life form..
New snake-like lizard discovered in India
A previously unknown species of legless lizard as been discovered in a remote Indian forest, reports the Associated Press.
Sushil Kumar Dutta, leader of a team of researchers from NGO Vasundhra and the North Orissa University, found the 7-inch long creature in the forests of Khandadhar near Raurkela in Orissa state, about 625 miles southeast of New Delhi.
"Preliminary scientific study reveals that the lizard belongs to the genus Sepsophis," Dutta told the Associated Press. "The lizard is new to science and is an important discovery. It is not found anywhere else in the world."
The closest relatives of the newly discovered species are found in Sri Lanka and South Africa.
Scientists say limbless forms of lizards have evolved independently several times, probably to facilitate underground movement. Most limbless lizards live under leaf litter or in upper levels of soil.
Limbless lizards are not snakes. They can be distinguished by their external ear holes and flat, non-forked tongues.
P/S:that's mean lizards evolved??i believe that if other creatures evolving too..i cant imagine what might happen..
Sushil Kumar Dutta, leader of a team of researchers from NGO Vasundhra and the North Orissa University, found the 7-inch long creature in the forests of Khandadhar near Raurkela in Orissa state, about 625 miles southeast of New Delhi.
"Preliminary scientific study reveals that the lizard belongs to the genus Sepsophis," Dutta told the Associated Press. "The lizard is new to science and is an important discovery. It is not found anywhere else in the world."
The closest relatives of the newly discovered species are found in Sri Lanka and South Africa.
Scientists say limbless forms of lizards have evolved independently several times, probably to facilitate underground movement. Most limbless lizards live under leaf litter or in upper levels of soil.
Limbless lizards are not snakes. They can be distinguished by their external ear holes and flat, non-forked tongues.
P/S:that's mean lizards evolved??i believe that if other creatures evolving too..i cant imagine what might happen..
Shark-Eating Dino Fossil Found in Utah
A Utah site frozen in Early Jurassic time recently yielded discoveries that include an enormous, previously unknown carnivorous dinosaur, a new shark species, at least three other new fish and three new trees.
All of the now-extinct organisms once thrived in or around a giant lake 200 million years ago, according to paleontologists who made the finds.
Anatomical features and track marks linked to the dinosaur suggest it specialized in eating and catching fish, including sharks and huge bony fish that, when consumed, would have been "like biting through chain mail," Utah State paleontologist James Kirkland told Discovery News.
The fish-loving dino, which the researchers believe was a cousin of the crested dino Dilophosaurus, would have been a formidable adversary to its fearsome prey.
"These (dinosaurs) got up to 18-20 feet in length, 6-7 feet high at the hips, and weighed between 750-1,000 pounds," explained Andrew Milner, city paleontologist at the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site on Johnson Farm, Utah, where the excavations took place.
Long, sharp teeth at the front of the dinosaur's mouth helped to keep fish from flying out, said Kirkland, while other, more slender teeth had "steak-knife serration" wear patterns between the tip and the gum line.
"The only other meat-eating dinosaurs with teeth worn like that are the spinosaurs Spinosaurus and Suchimimus from North Africa where large...fish dominated," said Kirkland.
One of the fish species discovered at the site, now called Lake Dixie, was indeed a semionotid — an early type of fish that usually had an elongated body, gills, jaws and scales or bony plates.
"Fish in the past were more armored than they are today," Kirkland explained.
The new shark species, named Lissodus johnsonorum, would have been an easier dinner, since its skeleton was made of cartilage and not hard bone, but the crunchy fish were more prevalent in the lake and outnumbered sharks 10 to one.
The Dilophosaurus relative also possessed nasal openings that retracted back from the end of its snout so, like today's crocodiles and alligators, it could still breath when its mouth was underwater.
Perhaps the most dramatic finds at the site are the dinosaur track marks. Milner said these belonged to several creatures including other dinosaur species, other reptiles and early ancestors of mammals.
The tracks show how the fish-eating dinosaur would wade out into the lake, sometimes "chest deep," according to Kirkland.
It's likely the dinosaur went into the lake to catch sharks and other fish, said Kirkland. This was no easy task, as indicated by "floundering" dinosaur claw scrapes and other marks found at the bottom of Lake Dixie.
"We have counted over 3,000 individual claw marks and toe scrapes that show incredibly detailed preservation," Milner told Discovery News. "We can see details of cuticle on the tips of claws, skin impressions, scale scratch lines and where claw cuticle was overlapped by the fleshy toe pads at the end of the toes."
There initially was some skepticism from other experts that these could include evidence for dinosaur swimming and fishing but, when the latest discoveries were announced near the site, British vertebrate paleontologist Peter Galton said "this has finally put to rest" the prior doubts.
The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science has just published a book, "The Triassic-Jurassic Terrestrial Transition," which provides brief mentions of many of the recent finds.
Visitors to the St. George site may also view some of the discoveries while literally walking in the footsteps of dinosaurs.
P/S:seem like long time ago..shark is just a fish to another huge and larger dinosaur..
All of the now-extinct organisms once thrived in or around a giant lake 200 million years ago, according to paleontologists who made the finds.
Anatomical features and track marks linked to the dinosaur suggest it specialized in eating and catching fish, including sharks and huge bony fish that, when consumed, would have been "like biting through chain mail," Utah State paleontologist James Kirkland told Discovery News.
The fish-loving dino, which the researchers believe was a cousin of the crested dino Dilophosaurus, would have been a formidable adversary to its fearsome prey.
"These (dinosaurs) got up to 18-20 feet in length, 6-7 feet high at the hips, and weighed between 750-1,000 pounds," explained Andrew Milner, city paleontologist at the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site on Johnson Farm, Utah, where the excavations took place.
Long, sharp teeth at the front of the dinosaur's mouth helped to keep fish from flying out, said Kirkland, while other, more slender teeth had "steak-knife serration" wear patterns between the tip and the gum line.
"The only other meat-eating dinosaurs with teeth worn like that are the spinosaurs Spinosaurus and Suchimimus from North Africa where large...fish dominated," said Kirkland.
One of the fish species discovered at the site, now called Lake Dixie, was indeed a semionotid — an early type of fish that usually had an elongated body, gills, jaws and scales or bony plates.
"Fish in the past were more armored than they are today," Kirkland explained.
The new shark species, named Lissodus johnsonorum, would have been an easier dinner, since its skeleton was made of cartilage and not hard bone, but the crunchy fish were more prevalent in the lake and outnumbered sharks 10 to one.
The Dilophosaurus relative also possessed nasal openings that retracted back from the end of its snout so, like today's crocodiles and alligators, it could still breath when its mouth was underwater.
Perhaps the most dramatic finds at the site are the dinosaur track marks. Milner said these belonged to several creatures including other dinosaur species, other reptiles and early ancestors of mammals.
The tracks show how the fish-eating dinosaur would wade out into the lake, sometimes "chest deep," according to Kirkland.
It's likely the dinosaur went into the lake to catch sharks and other fish, said Kirkland. This was no easy task, as indicated by "floundering" dinosaur claw scrapes and other marks found at the bottom of Lake Dixie.
"We have counted over 3,000 individual claw marks and toe scrapes that show incredibly detailed preservation," Milner told Discovery News. "We can see details of cuticle on the tips of claws, skin impressions, scale scratch lines and where claw cuticle was overlapped by the fleshy toe pads at the end of the toes."
There initially was some skepticism from other experts that these could include evidence for dinosaur swimming and fishing but, when the latest discoveries were announced near the site, British vertebrate paleontologist Peter Galton said "this has finally put to rest" the prior doubts.
The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science has just published a book, "The Triassic-Jurassic Terrestrial Transition," which provides brief mentions of many of the recent finds.
Visitors to the St. George site may also view some of the discoveries while literally walking in the footsteps of dinosaurs.
P/S:seem like long time ago..shark is just a fish to another huge and larger dinosaur..
Coelacanth: angler catches 'prehistoric' fish
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) -- An Indonesian angler caught a fish once thought to have disappeared along with the dinosaurs and held it in a quarantined pool until it died 17 hours later, a biologist said Sunday.
The coelacanth fish was thought to have become extinct 65 million years ago until one was found in 1938 off Africa's coast. The discovery of the so-called "living fossil" ignited worldwide interest.
Several other specimens have since been found, including one in 1998 in waters off the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, where Justinus Lahama also hooked his 1.3-meter (4-foot), 50-kilogram (110-pound) fish early Saturday.
The fisherman pulled it from waters near Bunaken National Marine Park, which has some of the highest levels of marine biodiversity in the world and is a popular diving spot for tourists, marine biologist Lucky Lumingas said.
Lumingas classified the fish as Coelacanth Latemeria, a powerful predator with highly mobile, limb-like fins. It is usually about 5 feet (1.5 meters) long and weighs around 45 kilograms (100 pounds). Unlike most other fish, it gives birth to live young rather than laying eggs.
Lumingas, who works with the local Sam Ratulangi University, said it was "extraordinary" the fish survived for 17 hours in a quarantined pool.
"The fish should have died within two hours because this species only lives in deep, cold-sea environment at a depth of at least 60 meters (200 feet)," he said, adding that his university would closely study the carcass.
P/S:is that mean..deep under the sea..there might be some strange creatures that we never able to track on..?
The coelacanth fish was thought to have become extinct 65 million years ago until one was found in 1938 off Africa's coast. The discovery of the so-called "living fossil" ignited worldwide interest.
Several other specimens have since been found, including one in 1998 in waters off the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, where Justinus Lahama also hooked his 1.3-meter (4-foot), 50-kilogram (110-pound) fish early Saturday.
The fisherman pulled it from waters near Bunaken National Marine Park, which has some of the highest levels of marine biodiversity in the world and is a popular diving spot for tourists, marine biologist Lucky Lumingas said.
Lumingas classified the fish as Coelacanth Latemeria, a powerful predator with highly mobile, limb-like fins. It is usually about 5 feet (1.5 meters) long and weighs around 45 kilograms (100 pounds). Unlike most other fish, it gives birth to live young rather than laying eggs.
Lumingas, who works with the local Sam Ratulangi University, said it was "extraordinary" the fish survived for 17 hours in a quarantined pool.
"The fish should have died within two hours because this species only lives in deep, cold-sea environment at a depth of at least 60 meters (200 feet)," he said, adding that his university would closely study the carcass.
P/S:is that mean..deep under the sea..there might be some strange creatures that we never able to track on..?
Giant Anacondas
The Anaconda has long since been known in scientific circles as Eunectes murinus. The longest specimen that has been reliably recorded is twenty-four feet. For some time, this snake was thought to be thirty-seven and half feet long, but later investigations showed the snake had been stretched accidentally. The creature, which had been killed by Robert Lamon, was located in eastern Colombia in 1944.
Natives of the Amazon know of a creature, called Sucuriju gigante, so well that they can name each of the animals specifically. The snakes are known to grow up to at least sixty two feet in length and some reports have them growing up to one hundred fifteen feet!
Lieutenant Colonel Percy Fawcett was exploring the Rio Abunã, near the intersection of the Rio Negro in southern Brazil, when the head of a Giant Anaconda surfaced next to his canoe. Several feet of the creatures back also came to break the muddy water as it moved towards the riverbank. Without hesitation, Fawcett shot and killed the creature with his pistol. After paddling to the shore, he found the creature to be "a length of forty five feet out of the water and seventeen feet in it making a total of length of sixty two feet." The explorer also told of another species of snake, nicknamed the "Sleeper", which is said to be black and much larger.
Perhaps the most amazing report comes from Fort Tabatinga, on the River Oiapoc in the Guaporé territory. In 1948, the Rio de Janerio newspaper told of a snake that came ashore and measured one hundred fifteen feet in length. Soldiers fired at least five hundred machine gun bullets into the beast before it finally died. After the body was measured and photographed the carcass was pushed into the river to avoid the horrendous stench that would be caused by decomposition.
Although the creatures seem too large to live, due to their length and girth, some speculate it could be possible for the snakes to exist. If they remained in the river water the buoyancy could sustain the creature's life and counteract the effects of gravity.
Some reports give the snake's gargantuan size- but it must be noted that snakeskins are very easy to stretch. It would be impossible, however, for someone to stretch a skin if the snake is still wearing it.
P/S:i do believe that they are real this time..
Natives of the Amazon know of a creature, called Sucuriju gigante, so well that they can name each of the animals specifically. The snakes are known to grow up to at least sixty two feet in length and some reports have them growing up to one hundred fifteen feet!
Lieutenant Colonel Percy Fawcett was exploring the Rio Abunã, near the intersection of the Rio Negro in southern Brazil, when the head of a Giant Anaconda surfaced next to his canoe. Several feet of the creatures back also came to break the muddy water as it moved towards the riverbank. Without hesitation, Fawcett shot and killed the creature with his pistol. After paddling to the shore, he found the creature to be "a length of forty five feet out of the water and seventeen feet in it making a total of length of sixty two feet." The explorer also told of another species of snake, nicknamed the "Sleeper", which is said to be black and much larger.
Perhaps the most amazing report comes from Fort Tabatinga, on the River Oiapoc in the Guaporé territory. In 1948, the Rio de Janerio newspaper told of a snake that came ashore and measured one hundred fifteen feet in length. Soldiers fired at least five hundred machine gun bullets into the beast before it finally died. After the body was measured and photographed the carcass was pushed into the river to avoid the horrendous stench that would be caused by decomposition.
Although the creatures seem too large to live, due to their length and girth, some speculate it could be possible for the snakes to exist. If they remained in the river water the buoyancy could sustain the creature's life and counteract the effects of gravity.
Some reports give the snake's gargantuan size- but it must be noted that snakeskins are very easy to stretch. It would be impossible, however, for someone to stretch a skin if the snake is still wearing it.
P/S:i do believe that they are real this time..
Tazelwurm
The tatzelwurm is a dragon-like beast reported from the Alps of Switzerland, plus nearby Austria and France, where is is often known by different names. The tatzelwurm looks something like a lizard or snake. It has smooth hairless skin covered with delicate scales. The tatzelwurm can grow to at least six feet long, but some specimens, possibly juveniles, are considerably smaller. It has two small front legs, and its hind legs are either missing or vestigal. Its head is the most distinctive part of its body. The tatzelwurm's head has big eyes and looks remarkably like the head of a cat, except for it having scales instead of fur. This feline look is remarked on by almost all witnesses, and it firmly links it with the dragon tradition. Dragon's heads are most often compared to the heads of cats and horses as far as the overall shape goes.
However, this feline face is absent from nearly all drawings of the tatzelwurm, which usually show something that looks like a pinecone or cigar with four stubby legs of the same size, and tiny eyes. Drawings from the time period when tatzelwurm sightings were common are notoriously unreliable, with known animals often looking only slightly like they actually do, so these discrepencies might not mean anything. It is somewhat disturbing that most tatzelwurm drawings are relatively consistent, and most tatzelwurm witness descriptions are relatively consistent, but that the drawings and descriptions show creatures that are almost the opposite of each other. It seems as if the first artist did not consider witness descriptions of any importance, and then, as is often the case, all later artists took their cues from the earliest publicized drawing.
Reports of these creatures have become very rare, so cryptozoologists think that, if the tatzelwurm did exist in the first place, it may be extinct today. Speculations on what it might have been center on lizards, salamanders, snakes and otters. Some salamanders have vastly shriveled legs, so perhaps the tatzelwurm was a giant salamander that was once native to the European Alps, an equivalent creature to known giant salamanders that are found in mountainous regions. With hind legs atrophied to almost nothing, it would have been aqapted to be far more comfortable in the water than most salamanders, but with still-existing front legs, it could get about on land if it really had to. Perhaps it was considered a mythical creature because it was usually hidden underwater and seldom came out to be encountered by people. This would fit in well with characteristics of the legends, as known species of salamander tend to be glimped rarely, and some known salamanders, such as the American mud puppy, have almost the status of legend.
If the tatzelwurm was a giant lizard, this would fit better with its supposed habit of preying on land animals (salamanders, even giant ones, would be expected to eat mainly bugs and small fish), but then we would have to explain a lizard with well-developed front legs, but no (or very tiny) back legs. With snakes, we would need to explain why it had legs at all, perhaps suggesting that it was some kind of throwback or that it was actually an evolutionary link between lizards and snakes.
The tazelwurm could perhaps be classified as a lake monster or sea serpent briefly traveling over land, like the lindorm is supposed to be, but it would be rather small, and mountainous terrain far from the ocean doesn't seem like an easy place for such creatures to be, unless they are traveling from one mountain lake to another. Trying to classify it as an otter presents the most problems, because, unless the otter in question were suffering badly from mange, it would have fur and look very much like an otter. Even without fur, its back legs should be evident. If you want to disregard that many details from witness testimony, then it seems easier to throw out all tatzelwurm sightings as lies or hallucinations.
P/S:the more we dont know about them..they seem more mysterious..do u agree?
However, this feline face is absent from nearly all drawings of the tatzelwurm, which usually show something that looks like a pinecone or cigar with four stubby legs of the same size, and tiny eyes. Drawings from the time period when tatzelwurm sightings were common are notoriously unreliable, with known animals often looking only slightly like they actually do, so these discrepencies might not mean anything. It is somewhat disturbing that most tatzelwurm drawings are relatively consistent, and most tatzelwurm witness descriptions are relatively consistent, but that the drawings and descriptions show creatures that are almost the opposite of each other. It seems as if the first artist did not consider witness descriptions of any importance, and then, as is often the case, all later artists took their cues from the earliest publicized drawing.
Reports of these creatures have become very rare, so cryptozoologists think that, if the tatzelwurm did exist in the first place, it may be extinct today. Speculations on what it might have been center on lizards, salamanders, snakes and otters. Some salamanders have vastly shriveled legs, so perhaps the tatzelwurm was a giant salamander that was once native to the European Alps, an equivalent creature to known giant salamanders that are found in mountainous regions. With hind legs atrophied to almost nothing, it would have been aqapted to be far more comfortable in the water than most salamanders, but with still-existing front legs, it could get about on land if it really had to. Perhaps it was considered a mythical creature because it was usually hidden underwater and seldom came out to be encountered by people. This would fit in well with characteristics of the legends, as known species of salamander tend to be glimped rarely, and some known salamanders, such as the American mud puppy, have almost the status of legend.
If the tatzelwurm was a giant lizard, this would fit better with its supposed habit of preying on land animals (salamanders, even giant ones, would be expected to eat mainly bugs and small fish), but then we would have to explain a lizard with well-developed front legs, but no (or very tiny) back legs. With snakes, we would need to explain why it had legs at all, perhaps suggesting that it was some kind of throwback or that it was actually an evolutionary link between lizards and snakes.
The tazelwurm could perhaps be classified as a lake monster or sea serpent briefly traveling over land, like the lindorm is supposed to be, but it would be rather small, and mountainous terrain far from the ocean doesn't seem like an easy place for such creatures to be, unless they are traveling from one mountain lake to another. Trying to classify it as an otter presents the most problems, because, unless the otter in question were suffering badly from mange, it would have fur and look very much like an otter. Even without fur, its back legs should be evident. If you want to disregard that many details from witness testimony, then it seems easier to throw out all tatzelwurm sightings as lies or hallucinations.
P/S:the more we dont know about them..they seem more mysterious..do u agree?
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